


Don't Be Proud, Harry; Be Well

by SeekerSpock32



Series: Harry Potter: Golden Generation [4]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Friendship, The Relationship is in the background, These tags contradict themselves over the course of the series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-15
Updated: 2020-05-15
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:34:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,233
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24205234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SeekerSpock32/pseuds/SeekerSpock32
Summary: Umbridge's first detention leaves Harry wondering whether anyone other than his closest friends trust him anymore, or if they ever did or should.Ron, Hermione, and Ginny are having none of his nonsense.
Relationships: Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley
Series: Harry Potter: Golden Generation [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1726438
Comments: 1
Kudos: 12





	Don't Be Proud, Harry; Be Well

**Author's Note:**

> Set during Order of the Phoenix.

It had been four hours. How was Harry going to explain this to his friends? 

“I think that should do it for today, Mr. Potter,” said Professor Umbridge, as if she had asked him to carry out part of a simple task, rather than etching ‘ _ I must not tell lies’ _ into his hand with that quill. Harry didn’t say anything. He was too busy trying not to wince from the pain in his hand. 

“You can go now, Mr. Potter. Return to my office the same time tomorrow and Friday evening and that should hopefully get the message across. Do you understand?” 

“Yes,” said Harry quietly, hoping she wouldn’t make him say, “Yes, Professor Umbridge.” Against all odds, she didn’t. Watching Harry use the quill must have put her in a good mood. Harry took her silence as assent and left Umbridge’s office at a brisk walk. Oh, how he was starting to loathe her! 

Harry didn’t encounter anyone along his journey back to the Gryffindor common room, allowing him time to let his face reflect the pain he was still feeling in his hand. It was the same arm that he broke in his second year from a rogue bludger, and then had to have the bones grow completely back due to another Defence Against the Dark Arts professor. Unlike Gilderoy Lockhart, Professor Umbridge’s inflicted harm on Harry was clearly out of malice, not incompetence. 

It wasn’t until just before arriving in Gryffindor Tower that Harry saw anyone at all. It was Seamus, who still hadn’t spoken with Harry since the spate the two of them had on their first day back. Harry covered up his injured right hand with his left so Seamus wouldn’t see what could be perceived as more ‘feigning injury’ like what Rita Skeeter had written about him near the end of the previous term. Harry and Seamus exchanged glances of ambivalence and Seamus walked off in the direction of the library. 

The Fat Lady wasn’t in her portrait when Harry reached it. She was probably off visiting her drunken friend Violet. Harry stood for five minutes, still covering his hand unless anyone arrived, which someone did. Ron and Ginny came through the portrait hole and nearly jumped back when they saw him.

“What took you so long, mate? We were starting to get worried she’d taken you out into the forest or something. said Ron.

“We were prepared to come looking for you,” said Ginny, “I had the Marauder’s Map and your father’s cloak ready to go,” 

“Nothing of the sort. Just writing some lines. But Umbridge has a different idea of what a reasonable number of lines that’s worse than anyone other than maybe Snape,” Harry replied. 

“Well let’s not stand here then, let’s go inside while the door’s still open,” said Ron, so they did. Ginny reached out with her left hand for Harry’s right, but he didn’t take it. He was in too much pain and the pressure from holding her hand might cause him to bleed more. There was a pause when Ginny realised Harry wasn’t going to take her hand and she seemed very upset but didn’t say anything. Yet, she walked back into the Gryffindor Common Room with him and Ron. 

Once the three of them entered, Hermione was the only other person present. She was working on an essay, or even more likely, proofreading one of Ron’s for transfiguration. 

“Oh, good. You’re back,” she said, looking up at Harry with a smile that barely concealed concern. Her eyes went down toward his hands, his left still covering his right, but then she spoke again.

“What did she make you do?” 

“Write a lot of lines,” Harry said, trying to make that task seem as tedious and boring as it wasn’t. 

“I don’t think that’s all it was, Harry,” said Ginny from behind him.

“What makes you think that?” asked Harry defensively.

“You’ve been covering your right hand since we found you outside and you didn’t take my hand like you always do. Clearly there’s something with that hand that you don’t want us to see,” said Ginny. Harry felt quite stupid for thinking that his girlfriend might miss any bit of his body language.

“ _ Well, it’s written and probably scarred onto my hand, so I might as well live up to it,” _ Harry thought.

“Okay, yes, there is, but I genuinely don’t want to show any of you,” he said, “it’s personal.” 

“Harry, since when do you hide things from us? Especially Ginny?” Ron asked. 

“I don’t, Ron. So you should take this outlier in my behaviour as a sign that I truly don’t want to talk about or show you what happened to my hand. If I want to keep something secret from you, and I basically never do, I’m serious.”

“Harry, whatever happened with Professor Umbridge clearly upset you and bottling up that anger by not telling us what happened, or lashing out at us because we’re trying to help, will only make it worse,” said Ginny, clearly growing frustrated with Harry’s reticence.

“It’s between me and Umbridge what she did to my hand; now can we please talk about something else?” Harry asked, also frustrated.

“Hermione?” Ginny asked. Hermione raised her wand.

“ _ Wingardium leviosa _ ,” she said curtly, and Harry’s left hand was lifted off of his right as though he were a marionette.

“Wha- Oi! That’s not fair!” Harry shouted, trying to lower his left arm, but his own arm resisted what his mind told it to do. It was too late. Ginny grabbed Harry’s right hand and stared at his hand with shock. As much as Harry loved holding Ginny’s hand, it still hurt from the wound recently inflicted upon it. 

“I must not tell lies,” she read aloud. Ron and Hermione walked over to Harry’s arm and they were just as shocked to see Harry’s injury.

“I’ve never read anything about magic like this,” said Hermione. “How did she do it?”

“I wasn’t lying about writing lines,” said Harry, “she gave me this quill but no ink and told me to write what you now see. I asked about the ink and she said I wouldn’t need any. So, I started writing and I feel the skin on my right hand break in rhythm with the writing. I look down at my right hand and see that I have carved ‘ _ I must not tell lies’  _ into my own skin. Repeat that process for three hours and you have crafted one of the worst things I’ve ever experienced.”

“Son of a-“ started Ron, but he didn’t finish the sentence. Instead, he exhaled angrily. 

“I’ve never even heard of quills that do this in any book. It must be some sort of blood magic like what Muggles say covens of so-called witches like to use,” said Hermione, who was clearly trying to talk herself through the shock of what she had seen. 

“So that’s it, then?” asked Ron. There was a silence.

“No, she wants me to go back tomorrow and Friday,” Harry replied, “then that’ll hopefully be the end of it.” 

“No,” said Ginny, “She can’t. You can’t.” 

“I don’t think I have a choice,” said Harry.

“Yes, you do. You report her,” said Hermione, “and you get down to the Hospital Wing so Madam Pomfrey can heal those wounds.”

“Report her to whom? Not many people believe me about much recently, and I honestly can see why they don’t,” said Harry. At this, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny looked shocked. 

“How much blood did you lose?” asked Hermione, “I’ve never seen you acknowledge that others wouldn’t believe you.”

“I had a lot of time to think about the truth during that detention, and I came to the conclusion that there are probably people who haven’t trusted me since that day I spoke parseltongue in Lockhart’s Dueling Club,” Harry explained.

“What on Earth are you on about? Are you not believing your own story anymore?” asked Ron. 

“No, I still know what’s true. We know what’s true. If you look at what’s happened to us since that day, it’s easy to see how ridiculous everything is. True, yes, but ridiculous. Unlike in our first year, what Ron and I did down in the Chamber, and how Ginny was the person who actually opened it wasn’t nearly as widely publicised because Dumbledore didn’t want people talking rumours about her,” said Harry.

“Until Skeeter last year,” said Ginny. 

“Malfoy knew,” said Hermione.

“But his dad was the actual culprit, so of course he knew,” said Harry. 

“That doesn’t explain why you understand why people don’t believe you,” said Hermione, “Sure, it was never officially explained why the attacks from the Chamber stopped, but word spread just like it did when you fought Quirrell. People, whether they know the full story or not, credit you and Ron to the end of that mess.” 

“That’s just the beginning of it. In third year, we told the Minister that Sirius Black, a convicted killer who is still on the run, was actually innocent, and we only found out about that by breaking a dozen school rules, and, people don’t know this, but the only way we saved him from a fate worse than death was by travelling through time. We did all that, but does that sound plausible at all?” asked Harry. 

“We live in a world of magic, Harry,” said Hermione, “I’ve learned to accept some things that don’t really make sense, if I can’t find a way to prove they didn’t happen.” 

“Fourth year is the real reason why people don’t trust me,” said Harry, continuing on as if Hermione hadn’t said anything. “My name emerges from the Goblet of Fire for no discernable reason, Rita Skeeter publishes falsehoods about you, Hagrid, and me constantly and the unfortunate truth of how Ginny was coerced into opening the chamber, and at the end of the year, look at my story. I return from the third task with the dead body of the other Hogwarts champion and I claim that the darkest wizard the world has ever seen has returned, despite him being supposedly dead for the previous 13 years. Also, he’s being helped by Peter Pettigrew, another person thought long dead, but who has actually been in hiding as a rat for more than a decade? And my name was put in the Goblet by someone who had been in a perfect disguise for an entire year? If you put that all together, it really sounds like absolute rubbish.” 

“But we know that’s all true,” said Ron.

“ _ We _ know, but how many other people know that whole story? There isn’t someone telling it from  _ my _ perspective. Only I was there with Umbridge; someone could easily say I faked these scars. Only Dudley was with me for that Dementor attack last month, and he can’t see Dementors. And Dumbledore raised a very important unanswered question at the hearing: why were those Dementors so far from Azkaban? I don’t have an explanation for that, and then I don’t really have undeniable proof that I was telling the truth,” Harry rambled, talking faster and faster. 

“Alright, so you don’t think people will believe you about Umbridge torturing you, but you should still report it. Dumbledore believes you on everything,” said Ginny.

“Dumbledore hasn’t spoken to me all year,” said Harry. 

“McGonagall then?” asked Ron. 

“Maybe,” said Harry.

“Then go to her, Harry!” said Hermione, “if Hagrid was nearly sacked for Malfoy provoking Buckbeak, then Umbridge should be fired for what she did to you.”

“She’s probably got political protection, being from the Ministry. It would be my word against hers.”

“I don’t care about the political implications of you telling people about this, Harry. What’s right is right and what has to be done has to be done,” said Hermione firmly. 

“You said it yourself. She’s here to make Ministry-approved changes to Hogwarts. If Dumbledore fired her, especially on my behalf, Fudge would be furious, and the Daily Prophet would definitely spin this in Fudge’s favour. He’d only come down harder on Hogwarts,” said Harry. 

“You still need to take care of yourself, mate,” said Ron, “Madam Pomfrey never told anyone that Hermione got turned into a half-cat once, let alone that we were using Polyjuice Potion. Fred and George don’t even know that. She was there that night in the Hospital Wing when Sirius Black revealed himself to mum, Hagrid, and McGonagall.” 

“If Umbridge sees that I’ve gone and healed my hand, you don’t think she’d escalate things? Madam Pomfrey could get in trouble for helping me.” 

“She’d say it’s worth it to help people and she’d help you every time the hag struck back,” said Ginny. 

“I don’t want Umbridge to know she’s getting to me,” Harry replied.

“Harry, you’re just making excuses at this point. Don’t be proud, be well,” said Hermione.

Harry knew he wasn’t helping his case anymore. He bowed his head, took a seat in one of the armchairs, and said, “fine, but I’m not reporting her beyond Madam Pomfrey.” 

“Hermione, could you, being a Prefect, effectively report her for this?” Ginny asked. 

“She’s not the only prefect in the room, Ginny,” said Ron.

“She’s the only one who cares about being a Prefect,” retorted Ginny. Harry didn’t like taking sides against Ron, but Ginny had a point. 

“Yeah, you’re probably right,” said Ron, “but that doesn’t mean I can’t be the one who stands up for Harry this time.”

“Thanks, Ron. I really appreciate that,” said Harry, “but I still don’t want this to go far up the chain. Maybe after my detentions are over when I’ll be less angry and more desensitised to this torture.”

“Harry, can you please go get your hand taken care of? I hate seeing you put your own needs at so low a value,” said Hermione. 

“I’ll take him there,” said Ginny, and Harry knew he wouldn’t be able to delay this any further. 

“Let’s go under the cloak just in case,” Harry said, and he and Ginny left the Common Room. Ron sat down at a table across from Hermione. 

“He’s got a point, though I think he’s more right than he knows,” said Hermione.

“Where on Earth are you going with that thought?” a befuddled Ron asked.

“His difference in behaviour. It’s unusual. I think he’s right to say we should take it seriously. I’m worried about him, Ron.” 

“I am, too.”

Meanwhile, Ginny and Harry walked under the invisibility cloak back to the hospital wing, the place where their relationship began two years ago. Unlike then, when Harry and Ginny wanted to be there when they didn’t need to be there, Harry needed to go there even though he didn’t want to. Neither Harry nor Ginny said much on their walk because they were already out after hours because of how much Harry had stalled in the common room.

Ginny’s mind raced thinking about how her boyfriend had changed since Voldemort had returned. After two years of consistently relying on her and four years of relying on Ron and Hermione, Harry was starting to refuse their help. She thought he felt alone even though it wasn’t true. Neither she, Ron, or Hermione were there when Harry dueled Voldemort, nor could they see what Harry saw pulling the carriages. There was something, maybe destiny, maybe the cruel randomness of the world, that made Harry think he was truly on his own. 

He wasn’t. He shouldn’t be. Ginny knew that Harry had been subjected to ten years and a few extra summers of being truly alone with nobody to properly care for him. He had probably internalised that alone would be the way he’d have to deal with Voldemort, even though this was rubbish from anyone else’s perspective. 

Ginny would be there for him. Ron would be there for him. Hermione would be there for him. Neville, Fred, George, and Ginny’s parents would be there for him. Hagrid would be there for him, even if he was off somewhere else right now. Ginny didn’t know Sirius Black very well, but she knew he’d be there for Harry, too. The Order would be there for Harry, even if they annoyingly kept information from him. Ginny knew that many people on the Wizengamot voted to clear Harry of all charges despite the pressure from Fudge, so most of the wizarding world would stick up for him. 

Why couldn’t Harry see all these people who were there for him? Or, if he could see it, why did he refuse to believe that other people wanted to help him? How much had losing Cedric Diggory scared him from accepting any help from others? 

Just before Harry and Ginny reached the hospital wing, Ginny stopped walking for a moment and pulled him over to a stone bench, still under the cloak.

“What’s wrong?” Harry whispered. Ginny looked into his eyes and mustered up all the courage she could.

“I don’t know what’s made you think you’ll have to do whatever it is alone, but you won’t ever have to,” she said, “please don’t start refusing help just because you don’t think you’ll get it.”

“What do you mean?” Harry asked.

“I’m going to always be here for you, so will Hermione and Ron. Don’t act like you’re alone. You aren’t.”

“What if you can’t help it?” Harry asked, “the three of you were forced to keep me in the dark this summer, and Voldemort will want to keep me isolated.” 

“I’m not listening to anyone, including yourself, when they tell me to not help you, nor are Hermione and Ron. Remember what the Sorting Hat said. We’ve got to stick together. Let’s get your hand fixed.”

“Alright,” said Harry, and they finally arrived at the Hospital Wing. The doors were unlocked, and the beds were empty. Harry saw a bell on a desk that Madam Pomfrey had once told them to ring if they needed any help. 

“You ring it,” said Ginny, and Harry did so. 

Madam Pomfrey came in from the adjacent room and Harry began the difficult task of asking for help. 

Madam Pomfrey did almost exactly what Hermione, Ron, and Ginny had said she would. She wasn’t able to heal the scarring, but knew murtlap essence would take some of the pain away, and that Harry could stop by after the next two detentions with Umbridge and nobody would know. Like Ron, Hermione, and Ginny, Madam Pomfrey also wanted to tell Professor Dumbledore about what Professor Umbridge was doing, and was about to go straight to Dumbledore’s office when Harry reminded her this would be breaking healer-patient confidentiality. 

Harry and Ginny left the hospital wing twenty minutes later with little satisfaction. It was nice to have someone like Madam Pomfrey who could help a little bit, but couldn’t actually do anything to solve the problem for good. That was the position that Fudge, Umbridge, and the Ministry had put everyone else at Hogwarts in. The staff could help somewhat, but they could be so much more helpful without interference. 

Harry knew that he, his friends, and the Order could see Voldemort coming but the Ministry was doing nothing to prepare or help. The way things were going at Hogwarts meant that help was needed more now than in ever in fourteen years. 

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> This story and the other two I've already published are ones that I'd written most of more than a year ago. The other parts of the story that I have written are much later in the overarching story, and while it doesn't bother me to publish chapters out of order and fix it later, I don't want those chapters out yet with no context to support them.
> 
> It could be a while before you see anything else from this series as I've nearly run out of chapters I'd already written. I have to make new ones from scratch. I've got the overarching story planned out but not many of the details.


End file.
